Tennis serve is a shot to start a point. This is initiated by tossing the tennis ball into the air and hitting the tennis ball diagonally opposite service box without touching the net. The serve may be hit using underhand or overhand. Although using underhand to serve is uncommon. If the ball hits the net on the first serve and bounces over into the correct diagonal box then it is called a “let”, and the server gets two more additional serves to get it in. There can also be a let if the server serves the ball and the receiver could not receive it. If the server misses first serve and gets a let on the second serve, then they get one more try to get the serve in the box.
Most professional tennis players master the conventional overhand serve to maximize its power and placement. The server may use different types of serve including flat serve, topspin serve, slice serve, or kick serve. A reverse type of spin serve is hit in a manner that spins the ball opposite the natural spin of the server, the spin direction depending upon right or left handed. If the ball is spinning counterclockwise, it will curve right from the hitter’s point of view and curve left if spinning clockwise.
Some tennis players are content to use the serve simply to initiate the point. For advanced players, they often try to hit a winning shot with their serve. A winning serve not touched or received by the opponent is called an “ace”.
Tennis Serve